Michael Sauerlaender, a Lombard Odier team head in Geneva for Brazil, is leaving the Swiss wealth manager, a source familiar with the matter told finews.com. The bank declined to comment; Sauerlaender couldn't be reached for comment.

A career private banker, Sauerlaender leaves less than four years after joining Lombard Odier from fellow-blue blooded Genevan asset and wealth manager Syz, where he was a senior banker. He previously worked at UBS and J.P. Morgan. It isn't clear who will replace Sauerlaender in the job.

Trimming Vs Hiring

Lombard Odier plans to trim certain businesses in a number of markets outside of Switzerland while hiring new bankers for others, according to a  source close to the developments. The changes are intended to boost productivity at the boutique wealth manager at a time when its competitive landscape is changing rapidly – archrival Pictet's profits fell after it spent much of the last 18 months recruiting bankers aggressively in all of the regions where Lombard Odier is also active.

Assets under management stood at $294 billion at the end of the first half of 2019, having grown by as much as 11 percent over the previous six months. Pictet, which has a similar focus on asset and wealth management, is larger at $593 billion in assets at year-end. Lombard Odier reports full-year results later this month.